Annals of Science and Technology Policy > Vol 2 > Issue 4

Nanotechnology: A Call for Policy Research

By Joshua Gorsuch, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, USA, jkgorsuc@uncg.edu | Albert N. Link, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, USA, anlink@uncg.edu

 
Suggested Citation
Joshua Gorsuch and Albert N. Link (2018), "Nanotechnology: A Call for Policy Research", Annals of Science and Technology Policy: Vol. 2: No. 4, pp 307-463. http://dx.doi.org/10.1561/110.00000008

Publication Date: 05 Dec 2018
© 2018 Joshua Gorsuch and Albert N. Link
 
Subjects
Government programs and public policy,  New product diffusion,  Product innovation
 
Keywords
O30 InnovationO32 Management of Technological Innovation and R&DO38 Government Policy
 

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In this article:
1. Introduction 
2. U.S. Policy Initiatives toward Nanotechnology 
3. U.S. Public Sector Investments in Nanotechnology 
4. A Taxonomy of the Nanotechnology Literature 
5. An Agenda for Future Research 
Appendices 
A. Annotated Bibliography of Nanotechnology Studies 
Acknowledgements 
References 
Author Biographies 

Abstract

We briefly overview U.S. policy initiatives related to nanotechnology and to the systematic investment in research that the U.S. Congress has approved to advance it over the nearly past two decades. Then, we summarize these U.S. research investments in nanotechnology, and we compare dimensions of nanotechnology activity in the United States to activity in other countries. The body of this paper is a nontechnical annotated bibliography of the relevant social science and policy literature; this bibliography is intended to serve as a reference document. Finally, we suggest specific directions for future policy research with a focus on a methodology for evaluating the social benefits of publicly funded nanotechnology R&D investments.

DOI:10.1561/110.00000008
ISBN: 978-1-68083-498-7
172 pp. $99.00
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Table of contents:
1. Introduction
2. U.S. Policy Initiatives toward Nanotechnology
3. U.S. Public Sector Investments in Nanotechnology
4. A Taxonomy of the Nanotechnology Literature
5. An Agenda for Future Research
Appendices
A. Annotated Bibliography of Nanotechnology Studies
Acknowledgements
References
Author Biographies

Nanotechnology: A Call for Policy Research

Nanotechnology: A Call for Policy Research provides a nontechnical reference source of the relevant social science and policy literature on nanotechnology. The authors hope to engender not only a greater appreciation of the economic and social benefits of nanotechnology but also to encourage more extensive research and public support of this technology. Section 2 briefly overviews U.S. policy initiatives related to nanotechnology and to the systematic investment in research that the U.S. Congress has approved to advance it over the nearly past two decades. Section 3 summarizes these U.S. research investments into nanotechnology and compares dimensions of nanotechnology activity in the United States to activity in other countries. Section 4 offers a taxonomy and overview of the relevant social science and policy literature related to nanotechnology. The taxonomy is a subjective classifying device for tracking the growth of this literature over time; the overview is a descriptive summary of how researchers in these disciplines have characterized the practice of nanotechnology. The appendix to this monograph presents an annotated bibliography of this literature. The extensive annotated bibliography fills a gap in the literature because the reviews that exist are limited in scope, and the review points out the lack of policy research related to public investments in nanotechnology. Finally, Section 5 suggests specific directions for future policy research with a focus on a methodology for evaluating the social benefits of publicly funded nanotechnology R&D investments.

 
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